D. S. Bradford

D. S. Bradford (born David Scott Bradford, December 10, 1982) is an American musical artist, singer-songwriter, performer, vocalist, guitarist, and composer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. In addition to being a musical performer, Bradford is a visual artist whose works are mostly considered to be surrealism.^[1] An example of which is his album art for "Oceans," his debut single (released July 1, 2014).^[2]

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, his life started with a natural love of music and art that took hold of him at an early age. Spurred by his parents, who were classical singers, as well as theatrical performers, Bradford developed first within the realm of visual art and illustration, then to vocal performance and guitar. This eventually lead to songwriting and composing music for film, television, and video games.^[3][4] In early 2015, Bradford joined forces with the producers of an MMORPG video game entitled Saga Of Lucimia as the composer of the soundtrack.^[5] On January 8, 2016, Bradford released "Elemental Evolution", the title track for his album, released on August 5, 2016.^[6][7]

Early career

Bradford started to write songs in 2007, while with his previous band, Certain Tragedy.^[8] In 2010, he had the opportunity to consult with award-winning artist development coach, songwriter, and A&R representative Jeff Blue (Linkin Park, et al.). Blue's critique and guidance helped Bradford to hone better songwriting techniques, song structure, and studio engineering, resulting in a better overall quality of music.^[3][9] Bradford subsequently joined BMI as a songwriter and officially started his solo career.^[10][11]

Live performances and development

In 2010, Bradford performed live at venues under his full name throughout the Philadelphia region, Delaware, New Jersey, and New York City. Included were a handful of shows sponsored by Philadelphia rock radio station WMMR (93.3 FM).^[12] His last show, before a hiatus, took place on October 22, 2010 at Tin Angel, in Philadelphia.^[13]

In 2016, he resumed performing publicly, just before the journey that led up to his release, Elemental Evolution,^[14] and embarked on a series of performances^[15][16][17] to promote the upcoming release and campaign on PledgeMusic.^[18]

A new start and rebranding

After nearly two years of no participation in music, Bradford began writing again. In an interview with iMoveiLive Magazine, it was stated that the reason behind the lack of new material was due to the lack of honesty he felt his songs had and that he took a step back to reassess his goals and priorities in life, dismissing his previous songs completely to start fresh.^[19]

On January 8, 2012, "Oceans" was written and was completely recorded on January 23, 2012.^[20] Bradford revealed that this song was the catalyst that refreshed his songwriting and honest lyrical storytelling that sparked creativity and that would eventually lead to a full-length album within the realm of genuine representation of his own experiences.^[19] He changed his stage name to D. S. Bradford.

Bradford continued the momentum and began writing songs that would ultimately become Elemental Evolution, releasing the titular track on January 8, 2016.^[21]

Blending visual art with music

In 2014, it was decided that "Oceans" would be released.^[2] Bradford had the idea to join the song with a visual piece of art, which ultimately became the album cover. The image depicts a scene of Earth, with the continents morphing into clasped hands, belonging to him and his fiancé, the oceans parting in the shape of a heart, revealing a sonogram image of their son. The drawing is a colored pencil rendering.^[22] Bradford has plans to create artwork for all of his releases.^[19] Following the success of his first single, Bradford embarked upon an illustration that would later be revealed as the cover for the Elemental Evolution EP, released in August 2016.^[23] The artwork is expanded upon in the physical CD version of Elemental Evolution, with each song having a corresponding illustration.^[24]

In addition to artwork related to his own releases, Bradford has created artwork for artists such as Vino Alan^[25] and a promotional video for Josh Eppard.^[26]

Musical style and influences

Bradford's musical styling has been described by AllMusic as Pop/Punk, alternative, with progressive rock undertones.^[27] Bradford's soundscapes are drawn from the inspiration of also being a classical music composer for media and is heard throughout the tale of Elemental Evolution.^[5][23] His compositions are often compared to the likes of Coheed and Cambria,^[23][27] and has stated himself that he is inspired by the group, in addition to bands like Nirvana, Bayside, and Jimmy Eat World.^[28]

Personal life

D. S. Bradford currently resides in Horsham, Pennsylvania, with his fiancé and son. His family is the subject of the art piece that represents "Oceans." Bradford credits his fiancé for supporting him during the time before his hiatus, when he became deluded in his reasons for becoming a professional musician.^[19]

Discography

Singles

• "Oceans" (July 1, 2014)
• "Elemental Evolution" (January 8, 2016)

EPs

• Elemental Evolution (August 5, 2016)

References

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: D. S. Bradford

• Official Website
• Bandcamp
• Official Twitter Account (@DSBradford)
• Official Facebook Page
• MTV Artists Page